Last Dance
by KathDMD
Summary: One month before graduation, Space Marshal Graham chooses five of his graduating cadets as an exploration team to Planet Arus. His decision sets off a whirlwind of break-ups, hook-ups, announcements, and...Lemon Drops? Rated "M" for excessive drinking and sexual innuendos.
1. Right Through Me

_Author's Note__**: **__So I've been referencing the "Lemon Drop Incident" throughout my other stories (__Someone Like You__, __Icicle__, and __This Isn't Everything You Are__), and I thought maybe I should go into a little more detail about it. You don't need to have read my longer stories to appreciate this one, you just need a sense of humor. Be prepared to laugh, cry, worry about, and fall in love with some of these Space Academy students. I know __**I **__love them._

_A special thanks to Emie Mac, Wade Wells, and Charigul for telling me I should do more Space Academy stories. This one's for you ladies!_

_I own nothing except the characters I've created. Also, I do this only for entertainment and stress relief purposes only; I make no money off it._

_**Part 1: Right Through Me**_

* * *

It was taking everything in Lance not to crack up as he watched his friends turn white in Space Marshal Graham's office. Hunk, Pidge, Keith, Sven - they had never been called in there before. They, along with Jeff, were the golden boys on their floor. On the flip side, Lance had been in trouble plenty of times with Cliff and Aidan, and had seen his fair share of the inside of the Space Marshal's office, so this was nothing new.

"Keith Kogane. Sven Holgersson. Darrell Stoker. Tsuyoshi Garrett. Lance McClain." Graham imperceptibly shuddered on pronouncing Lance's name during the roll call; he'd said it far too many times over the last five years. He was surprised that the cadet had even made the short list for this mission on account of his behavior. Then again, he _was _one of the best pilots Graham had ever seen.

"Space Marshal Graham, Sir." They each stood up and saluted, though Lance was rolling his eyes internally the entire time.

Once the Space Marshal sat down, the five cadets followed suit. "Gentlemen, as you are aware," he began, eyeing each of the cadets individually and settling his gaze on Lance in particular, "graduation is in less than four weeks."

"Yes, Sir," Keith answered stoically, his face impassive. His friends could tell that he was terrified.

"We are raising a space exploration mission to leave the day after graduation. Specifically, the team is meant to go to Arus, a small planet in the Azure Quadrant of the Denubian Galaxy. They have contacted the Alliance for help, as they have been under attack by King Zarkon of Planet Doom for many years now."

Sven, the navigator of the group, raised his eyebrows. "If Zarkon began attacking them that many years ago, then why are they asking for help _now_? It doesn't make any sense."

Graham shook his head. "There are many reasons - all speculative, of course. But the most powerful reason is that we believe they have ancient weaponry that could help them win the war against Planet Doom. Unfortunately, the planet is in no shape to use these weapons - most of its inhabitants have been murdered or enslaved, including their scientists and military."

"We _believe _they have it? Or they _actually _have it?" Lance asked in amusement. "With all due respect, Sir, I do not believe that a man of your caliber would send us on a wild goose chase if they didn't actually have a weapons system."

Graham sighed. Cadet McClain was obviously going to try his patience right up until the bitter end. "The Prime Minister and strategist of the Arusian castle - or, I should say, what's left of the Arusian castle - hinted that they have a weapons system that is so powerful that it could actually defeat the Doom empire. Yet no one has dared attempt to use it, not since the death of King Alfor and his scientists. The Arusian people have been unable to recover over the years, and the Prime Minister has decided that enough is enough."

"Well then." Pidge looked up. Though he was in their class, the boy genius was four years younger, seventeen years old to their twenty-one. Because of his age and his smarts, he too could crack comments the way Lance could, but was smooth enough to avoid disciplinary action. "They're a little slow. It's about time."

Graham nodded. "Indeed. The Prime Minister asked for a team of five, and through the investigative efforts of Lieutenants Brown and Stebbins, you five have been selected. Congratulations. You have exactly four weeks to tie up any loose ends and get your affairs in order before leaving for Arus." He stood and saluted. "You are all dismissed."

Walking out of the office left some of them even whiter than when they were in the office. Particularly Sven. Lance looked over at his roommate and knew from the numb expression on his face exactly what was running through his mind: a certain systems analyst with chestnut-brown hair and black lips.

"Well. _That _was sobering," Keith stammered as they headed back to the dorm. He laced his fingers behind his neck. "Oh, man, now I've gotta tell Morgan that I'm leaving for Arus the day after graduation. Cripes." He looked over at Hunk and Pidge. "If I'm not back in fifteen minutes, send out the search party."

Keith and his girlfriend, Morgan Feld, had only recently gotten back together after yet another drama- and scream-filled break-up. The two of them were toxic together, yet they just couldn't seem to stay away from each other. His friends and soon-to-be teammates were concerned about how well she was going to take this announcement. It just might push her over the edge.

"Dude, if she kills you," Hunk responded, "I'm gonna tell everybody it was your fault."

"_Thanks_, Hunk."

Trudging up the main staircase, they made their way to the third floor of their dormitory, feeling more adult than they had when they left. Sven headed straightaway to the room he shared with Lance and unlocked the door. He had to get changed and go. He needed to do something before he could face his girlfriend and tell her the news.

Lance waited outside the door for his roommate to change. When he finally exited, the quiet Norwegian rushed by him, head down. "Hey Sven," he called after him, "are you okay?"

His roommate shook his head. _"Ikke,"_ he answered.

"I don't speak Viking!"

Sven grumbled something in Norwegian under his breath. Lance was pretty sure he just swore at him. Deciding to ignore it, he trotted over to roommate. "Want some company?"

Sven shook his head, and Lance could see the intense pain in his slate-blue eyes, pain that radiated to the rest of his face. "Dude. This is about Len, isn't it?"

He nodded quietly.

"Are you gonna break up with her?" _And if you do, then that was certainly a waste of five years of your life. Five years where you could've been closin' the deal with every hot chick who had a thing for a guy with an accent, and instead you settled for one frickin' girl. Dummy._

He sighed. "I'd rather not talk about it, Lance."

As Sven disappeared down the rear stairwell, Lance joined up with Pidge and Hunk. "Where'd Keith go?" he asked.

"I think he went back to the quad to wait for Morgan to get outta class - I guess he figured he'd be safer telling her the news in public," Hunk replied, not seeming to care too much. "Dude, I've got ten bucks on them breaking up when he tells her that he's goin' to Arus."

Pidge shrugged. "That's too easy, Tsuyoshi. Make it at least interesting. I'll put ten bucks on her telling him that he ruined her life."

"I'll put fifty on her swearing at him," Lance tossed out.

"Where are you gonna get fifty bucks?" Pidge asked him. "But anyway, that's _way _too easy. It's the amount of curse words that she says that you should really be putting money on. Put fifty on how many F-bombs she drops on him."

"Ooh, that's a good one," Hunk laughed. "Hey Pidge, are you gonna tell Chip the news, or what?"

Pidge nodded. "Well, I kinda have to. He _is _my twin, he's got a right to know." He closed his eyes. "He and Len are studying for our Extended Analysis final. Man, I wonder how _she's _gonna take the news. Probably as bad as Morgan."

"Maybe worse," Lance mused, shaking his head. He was worried. He'd watched Sven storm off, and that probably wouldn't lead to anything good. "You should let Sven be the one to tell her, though. She deserves to hear it first from him."

Pidge sighed. "Yeah. I know." He shook his head. "Hey, did you see the look on Sven's face when Graham told us about Arus? He looked like he wanted to die. Sure, Keith looked nervous, but Sven literally looked like he'd rather die than go without Len."

Lance exhaled. "Yeah. Well, this is about as much fun as I can take for one day. I'm gonna go visit with Cliff and Aidan."

"You're off to tell your partners in crime, eh?" Hunk teased.

"Yeah. And then I'm gonna bum a cigarette off of them. Right now, I think I need one."

* * *

Useless. The meeting had been useless.

Sven had tried to get the Space Marshal to change his mind about the space exploration team's make-up. "Morgan Feld is a better navigator than I am, Sir," he'd attempted to reason in privacy. "I don't see any sense in sending me on this mission when she is obviously the more skilled of the two of us." But Graham had dismissed the thought entirely, replying that Morgan's relationship with Keith was just too unstable to rely on, and the mission was too important to be compromised or jeopardized.

"Besides," Graham countered, "I chose this team with specific reasons in mind. I cannot make any substitutions without altering the team's framework."

Yeah. Whatever _that _meant.

Now he stood in front of the academic building, shaking his head. The sun was bright, and it was a beautiful day. The weather had been like this every day since last weekend, when they celebrated his girlfriend's twenty-first birthday. They were both adults now, legally anyway, and Sven's thoughts returned to a decision he'd made earlier in the academic year. A decision he'd accidentally - and drunkenly - spilled to Jeff on the night of Morgan's twenty-first birthday.

He walked off campus and headed towards Fifth Avenue to finish what he'd started.

* * *

Lisa's head was buried in her textbook. She'd chosen to specialize in the often-overlooked subject of interplanetary relations, which she knew her roommate found to be nerdy, uncool, and boring - the exact _opposite _of exciting.

"Roommate," Ginger whined, "why are you studying now?"

"Um, because finals are coming up in three weeks? I'd like to pass so I can graduate." She rolled her eyes. "I know that when you specialize in piloting, you don't have to do a ton of studying to pass your exams, but _I _do."

"Sheesh. You sure are grumpy." Sitting on her bed, Ginger reached underneath and pulled out her bottle of Bombay Sapphire. It was almost brand-new, meaning that only one shot had been drunk out of it. "Some of this'll make you feel better. Promise."

Lisa scrunched up her face. "Ick. I don't know how you can drink that stuff. Do you like it so much because it's in your name? _Gin? _As in the first half of _Gin_ger?"

"Hmm. Never thought about it that way." She shrugged. "Maybe." She twisted the cap off the bottle of gin and fished out the shotglass that Lance bought her for her twenty-first birthday. It was a plain glass with her name and the date of her big day engraved on it. "You _sure _I can't tempt you with some, Lis?"

Lisa shook her head. "Blech. _Nope."_

"Well then, I'll drink her share, Gin."

The two roommates looked up to see Morgan standing in their doorway, red-faced and teary-eyed. "You heard me, Blondie. Start pourin'."

"Oh, stars in heaven." Lisa closed her text and moved over to their friend, embracing her in a hug. Ginger, doing what she did best, poured two shotglasses of gin.

Morgan made her way over to the beds and collapsed onto Lisa's, flipping around so that her legs were up against the wall and her head was hanging upside-down off the bed. "Oh, Gin," she sighed, "if you think that dinky little shotglass is gonna cut it, you've got another thing coming. Where's the friggin' bottle? Lemme drink straight from _that_."

"Let me guess." Patiently, Lisa sat down on the bed next to Morgan. "You and Keith broke up again."

"For good." Morgan closed her eyes and let the pain wash over her. Ginger and Lisa were surprised she was taking the break-up this well; usually she was a hysterical mess whenever she and Keith were in the "off" part of their on-and-off relationship. "This time, it's for good."

"What happened this time?" Ginger asked, taking Morgan's hand and wrapping her fingers around the shotglass.

"Something I never saw coming." She didn't open her eyes. "Keith got his orders. He's headed for Arus after graduation. Ugh. I'm pretty sure I had an audience on the quad when I told him I hated him."

"Arus?" Lisa asked, ignoring her other statement about the audience on the quad. "What's on Arus? Why would he be going there?" A terrible feeling suddenly swept over her. "Who's going with him?"

Morgan cracked her eyes open. "Oh, that's the punch line of the joke, Lis. He's going with Pidge, Hunk, Lance, and Sven." She swallowed. "Sven went to go tell Len a little while ago."

"Oh, cripes." Ginger slugged back her own shotglass of vodka. "Len's gonna need a drink, too. And I don't think we've got enough shotglasses." She shot Morgan a shocked look. "Wait a second...did you say they were going with Hunk, Pidge, and _Lance_?"

Morgan grabbed the open bottle of gin and brought it to her lips. Miraculously, she didn't spill a drop, even though she was hanging upside-down. "Yup. They leave the day after graduation."

"Oh, my God." Ginger grabbed the bottle from Morgan's mouth and poured herself another shot. "Ick. Now this has your germs on it, Feld."

"Shut up, Ellington."

Suddenly, their door flung open again, with a stricken-looking Cinda standing in front of them. They had been expecting Lenora, not Cinda. "Oh my God, Hunk's going to Arus!" she cried out, her eyes filled with tears. Her roommate, Kelly Asimov, was attempting to calm her down by rubbing her back, but it wasn't helping. "My other half is leaving me! _Ginger! _I need to get drunk!"

"Well, cripes, now I _really _don't have enough shotglasses," Ginger deadpanned. She took the still-full shotglass out of Morgan's hand and passed it over to their blue-skinned floormate. "And why do you girls always come to _me _when you wanna get drunk, anyway? Here, you can have this one. Morgan chose to drink directly outta the bottle."

"Ew," Kelly uttered, scrunching up her face. "Remind me not to drink any of that."

"Shut up, Asimov." Morgan shot her an upside-down dirty look. "The alcohol kills the germs, anyway."

Cinda threw back the gin and shook her head at the burn down her throat that followed. "Blech. That still doesn't make me feel better." She sighed, flopping down onto the bed on the other side of Morgan. "Oh, Hunk. My other half is leaving. Who am I gonna do engineering with now? The two of us were supposed to get stationed together, work together, and bounce ideas off each other for the rest of our careers! The engineering duo known as Hunk-and-Cinda will be no more!"

"Well, _I _just broke up with Keith again, so you can imagine how well it's going for me down here," Morgan shot out, raising her eyebrows. In her position, her eyebrows looked like they were pointing towards the floor.

Lisa sighed. "And let's not forget, at any moment now, we're gonna have a hysterical Lenora on our hands, too." She looked back over at the bottle of Bombay. "On second thought, maybe I _should _do a shot."

"That's only if you get your own glass," Ginger informed her. "I'm fresh out."

"I'm on it." Lisa opened the bottom drawer of her bureau and fished out two shotglasses. They were her twenty-first birthday gift from Cliff and his roommate Aidan Dalloway. Come to think of it, she had slipped away from her friends during her birthday celebration to steal a birthday kiss from Aidan. It wasn't as though she had any romantic feelings for him; it was only because she wanted to know what it felt like to kiss the best-looking guy on their floor. And Aidan, with his long blond hair, sapphire eyes and washboard abs, held that title. "Here. One for me and one for Len."

"Oof. Len's gonna be crushed," Kelly murmured, sitting down in Ginger's desk chair. "Speaking of which, I haven't heard any hysterics from the corner room down the hall yet. Do you think he told her, or do you think he tried to close the deal one more time before breaking up with her?"

"No way. Sven's not like that," Morgan countered. "He's a good guy. He is madly in love with that girl. And I would know - not only is Len my roommate, but I've spent more time in class with Sven than anyone else."

"Blech. Navigation's too math-heavy for me," Ginger replied. She looked down at her empty shotglass. "I think I need more gin."

"GINGER!" Lisa screeched. "How many shots does that make?"

"Relax. Only two." Ginger stuck her tongue out at her roommate as she refilled her shotglass. "This one makes three."

"This one makes you cut off."

Morgan sighed. She grabbed the Bombay away from Ginger and took another upside-down swig straight from the bottle. "See, that's the best part about drinking straight from the bottle. Not only is there a limitless supply, but there's no way of knowing for sure how much you've drunk." She wiped the excess dribble off her lips. "Oh, how I love being twenty-one and legal to drink in all fifty states."

"Sing it, sister." Ginger sipped slowly at her drink. She wouldn't say anything out loud, she didn't dare. Not when Morgan and Cinda were such an obvious hot mess, and certainly not when Lenora was about to come into the room with her whole world crashing down to her feet. After all, it wasn't like she and Lance had been exclusive with each other. So what if she loved him more than any other guy? She'd never told him that, and nobody knew about the "relationship" that they'd had since their first year at the Academy, either.

Suddenly, there was no more time to ponder over her feelings for Lance. The door opened again, and there stood Lenora in the hallway. She was dressed in civilian clothes instead of her cadet uniform. As she stepped into the room and turned to close the door behind her, the girls could see the dried tear streaks along the side of her face.

"Wifey?" Morgan asked quietly, using her favorite pet name for her roommate. She finally lifted herself up from her inverted position and sat up. "Are you okay? Do you need alcohol? Ginger's pouring."

On cue, Ginger lifted up the more-than-half-empty bottle of Bombay Sapphire.

Lenora shook her head and sat down at Lisa's desk. "I can't drink."

"Oh, Hon, we know you're upset," Kelly cooed sympathetically, "but maybe if you had something to drink, it might help you get everything off your chest, and you'll feel better."

She gave another quick shake of her head. "I _can't _drink," she reiterated. "Because tonight Sven and I are taking my mother to the Russian Tea Room to tell her that we got engaged."

The dorm room erupted into screams. "Oh my God, we're having a _wedding_!" Lisa cried out. "The ring! Where's the ring?"

Lenora held out her left hand to show the girls her ring. There was no diamond - there was no way they could afford a diamond - so they'd settled for purchasing plain platinum wedding bands. "Sven picked them out. They're from Tiffany. He proposed to me at Tiffany."

"Oh my God." Tears ran down Morgan's face. "I am so, _so _happy for you, Wifey. Where's that Viking of yours? I wanna congratulate him, too!"

"I'm sure he's down the hall, telling the guys."

"Wait a second, I'll be right back."

Morgan shot up off the bed and darted down the hallway, where she found Sven hanging out in his doorway, flanked by Keith and Jeff, telling Lance the news. At length, she could see the matching platinum band shining on his left hand. "VIKING!" she screeched, charging at him.

Sven turned his head, a shocked expression on his face as he saw Morgan charging at him. "Whoa!" he cried out, attempting to keep himself stable as she jumped into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, covering his face with tipsy kisses. "_Herregud, _Morgan, I didn't get this much of a response from Lenora when she said yes!"

"Dude," she told him breathlessly, "I am so freakin' excited for you two. Congratulations, Sven!"

With those words, she dropped her head onto his shoulder and began to sob as though her heart was breaking. Which, as they all knew, it was.

"Oh, Morgan." Without putting his fellow navigator down, he started towards the corner room down the hallway. She never looked up while he carried her. If she had, she would have noticed the stricken look on Keith's face as her broken heart burned through him.

* * *

Later that night, when most of the floor was studying - or, in the case of the newly-engaged couple, having a celebratory dinner at the Russian Tea Room - a meeting of the minds took place. Lance, Keith, Jeff, and Morgan met in Lance's room. Lance sat on his bed, while Keith sat on his desk. Morgan sat on Sven's desk, staring across the room at her now-ex-boyfriend. Jeff took his usual spot on the beanbag chair.

"So," Lance began, wishing he had either a cigarette or a drink in his hand, "I've called the three of you here because, as you know, I consider the Viking to be my best friend, and his girl like my sister."

"Wow. Don't let them hear you gettin' all sappy," Jeff shot up from the beanbag chair.

Lance rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Aki. So, as I was saying, I knew my Sis would eventually beat him into submission, and I wanted to give them an engagement present. I wanted them to spend their last month together in the same dorm room. We can do this the easy way, by Morgan moving in with me, or we can do this the hard way by flip-flopping roommates."

"What would the hard way involve?" Keith asked.

"The way I see it, Keith, you can move in with me - after all, since we're going to Arus together, we should probably hang together. That would leave the other half of Jeff's room open, and since Morgan and Jeff are amigos, they could move in without any problems."

"That's really nice of you, McClain," Morgan offered. "I'm cool with whatever you guys feel comfortable with." She shot Lance a crooked grin. "As long as you don't try to hook up with me in my sleep, of course." Then, with a sad smile pointed towards the floor, she added, "Then again, I _am _a free agent now. Let's do it the easy way. No sense in moving more people around than we need to."

Keith's jaw dropped open slightly, but he said nothing in reply.

Noting the expression on Keith's face, Lance wondered for a moment if that was the right way to go. Unfortunately, he didn't know what would be worse - Morgan moving in with him, or Morgan moving in with Keith's best friend. Either way would be a lose-lose scenario for Keith.

Jeff looked over at Keith from his spot on the beanbag chair. "Morgan should move in with me," he decided. He then turned to look at Morgan. "What do you say, Morganza? Wanna be my roommate?"

"I'll start moving my stuff now, Amigo."

"Cool. It's decided." Lance rubbed his hands together. "I'll start moving the Viking's stuff down the hall. Let's give them the corner room. There's more privacy there than there is in the middle of the hallway."

Morgan nodded in agreement. "Got it."

As she moved down the hallway to start gathering up her things, she recruited Ginger, Lisa, Kelly and Cinda to help. Explaining the situation to them, it took no time to convince them to take a break from studying and help gather her stuff up to move into Jeff's room.

Crossing paths in the hallway - her arms full of Morgan's clothes, his arms full of Sven's books - Ginger shot Lance a beyond-dirty look. She was annoyed that he still hadn't told her to her face that he was going to Arus.

"What's that look for?" he asked in his obnoxiously charming way.

"You know what that's for," she responded coolly, moving away from him. "Were you even going to tell me that you were going to Arus, or were you just gonna let me find out through the communal grapevine?"

"Gin, I didn't even know you knew a word as big as _communal_, let alone how to properly use it in a sentence."

She chucked Morgan's shoe at him.

* * *

It took almost two hours, but the move went smoothly. Morgan waited at the top of the stairs for the lovebirds to return to the dorm. She couldn't wait to see the shocked expressions on their faces as they realized that they'd be living together until Sven left for Arus.

She heard them coming up the stairwell, their giggles punctuated by small kisses. Her roommate - former roommate now - looked beautiful in her strapless dress. The black bodice clung to her decent curves, and the cream-colored tulle skirt hit mid-calf to show off her black peep-toed heels. It was perfect for the Tea Room.

She cleared her throat.

That got their attention. "Hi, Wifey!" Lenora called up the stairwell, reaching for Sven's hand. "We're coming up."

"How's your mom? Is she excited about the engagement?"

"She is! I thought she would say we're too young, but she's excited. And she's doing great! Boy," she said pointedly, looking back at Sven, "if I look even _half _as good as my mother does when I'm her age, you'll be really lucky."

"I'm already lucky," he replied with so much sweetness in his voice, Morgan could've gotten a cavity.

"In _any _case," Morgan broke in, "we all got you an engagement gift. Some of us did more work than others, but the whole floor went in on it. Wanna see?"

Lenora's black lips parted in surprise. "You guys didn't have to do anything."

"No. We did. And trust me, you're gonna thank us when you see it."

Holding hands, the couple climbed up the last set of steps to the floor, and Morgan escorted them down to the corner room. She smiled as they took one look at the newly-decorated room and realized what their floormates had done for them. "But where are _you _gonna live?" Lenora asked.

"We played roommate roulette." Morgan grinned at her wryly. "Keith moved in with Lance, and I moved in with Jeff. If I couldn't have my Wifey, I'd go with the next best thing and have my Amigo."

From down the hall, Ginger watched as both Sven and Lenora embraced Morgan in thanks. Scrunching up her face, she returned to her own dorm room. Lisa was studying - _That girl is aiming to be the top-ranked Interplanetary Relations specialist _- and she knew there was still a mouthful of gin left in the bottle of Bombay. She jumped on her bed and thought about how angry she was at Lance as she took the last swallow of gin.


	2. Save Tonight

_Author's Note__: You all know how much I love gettin' dressed up. As IF I wouldn't tell you about what the girls are wearing! All of the dresses are available on the ModCloth website._

_On Lenora (Russian Tea Room): Perfectly Curated Dress_

_On Lenora (Senior Night): Crisscross Examination Dress_

_On Lisa: You Better Be-reef It Dress_

_On Cinda: Chill With Me Dress_

_On Morgan: Shoulder Me How Dress in Violet_

_On Kelly: Evening Reservations Dress_

_On Ginger_: _Flirty at the Fete Dress_

_**Part 2: Save Tonight**_

* * *

It was the Friday night before graduation. Final exams were over, and miraculously, everyone on the floor had passed. Class ranks had been issued, and the class valedictorian and salutatorian were both on their floor - Keith had garnered Class Rank #1, and Lenora held Rank #2. There was nothing left to do except go the the dance on Senior Night and graduate the following Sunday.

Ginger stared at herself in the mirror after she'd gotten herself ready for the dance. She had styled her chin-length curly blond hair in the manner of a high-end women's magazine and done her make-up flawlessly, making up a smoky eye and foregoing her usual red lipstick. In lieu of red lips, she had chosen to dress herself in red - a flawless spaghetti-strap tomato-red dress.

"You look stunning, Ginge," Lisa complimented her, staring at the two of them in their full-sized mirror. "In fact, we're both looking fantastic. I'm so glad you're my date tonight."

Thinking of Lance and how angry she still was at him, she nodded. "Me too."

The rest of the girls on the floor had dates, even if most of them were only friendly dates. Cinda was going with Hunk, her other half and partner in engineering. Morgan was going with her Amigo and new roommate, Jeff. Kelly was going with Cliff, her best guy friend. Not surprisingly, Len and Sven were going together.

There was an unexpected knock on the door. "Come in," Ginger called out as Lisa dusted her face with matte powder one last time. "It's open."

Aidan stood in the doorway with a shocked expression on his face. "Wow. You two look _gorgeous_!"

"You're not gettin' in either of our panties tonight, Dalloway," Lisa shot back at him.

He laughed, partially in response and partially because he didn't know who looked better. Ginger was an obvious knockout in her red dress, but Lisa, wearing a strapless dress of tiered ruffles in varying shades of blue and green, was a subtle beauty. "Well, I didn't come over here to get into your panties - though if you two change your minds and decide you want to have a threesome after the dance, I won't say no."

Lisa chucked her hairbrush at him.

"Okay, seriously," he said, changing his tone of voice, "Cliff is taking Kelly to the dance, and Lance is hanging with Keith tonight. Both of my boys are out of commission. Would you girls mind if I tagged along with you?"

"Oh, so you can show up at the dance with two girls and look like the man? No thanks," Lisa dismissed him coolly.

"Hey, not so fast, Lis." A thought crossed over Ginger. It would annoy Lance if Aidan showed up with two girls on his arm - one of them being _her _- and it would make him even more annoyed that he chose to hang out at the dance with Keith. "There might be something to his idea."

Both Aidan and Lisa looked over at her in surprise. _"What?"_ they both asked simultaneously.

Ginger nodded. "Really."

* * *

Sven zipped up his fiancée's dress for her. Lenora had chosen a little black dress with a twist; bands of black fabric criss-crossed over the back of her shoulders. She'd chosen to display that detail by wearing her chestnut hair twisted up. "You look...well, let's just say I'm a lucky man to be engaged to you, _Elskede_."

"Hmm." She uncapped her black lipstick, but before she put it on, she placed a kiss on Sven's lips. "I'm pretty lucky too, Beloved. I love you."

"Always and forever." He took her left hand and placed a kiss on her ring.

"Always and forever." She turned back to the mirror and began to paint the lipstick onto her mouth. "Hey, I'm thinking about retiring the black lipstick after tonight."

"What for?"

She capped the lipstick and placed it down, giving him a huge smile. "Because I'm happy."

"Because we're engaged?"

"Exactly. And besides, nobody's gonna take a tech sargeant seriously with black lips."

He shrugged. "You know I love your black lips, but whatever you want to do is good enough for me." Drawing in a deep breath, he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you so much, _Elskede. _It's killing me to think that I'm leaving in three days."

"I know." She rested her head on his shoulder, careful not to leave any black lip prints on his white shirt. "Don't think it's not killing me, too." She choked down her sob, willing herself not to ruin tonight, _not _to ruin their last few days together.

She didn't want leave his arms. Ever.

* * *

Pidge found his twin brother Chip, as well as Chip's roommate Rocky, in the ballroom. "Yo, Pidge!" Rocky sputtered in his Brooklyn accent. He waved him over. "Where's that roommate of yours? I was hopin' he'd show his ugly mug tonight."

"Don't worry, Rocky, Hunk's coming," Pidge assured him. "He's with Cinda tonight."

"I bet they're both hurting about him going to Arus," Chip shrugged. "They're the best engineering team-up I've ever seen. They're gonna be lost without each other." He shrugged. "It's a good thing _you're _gonna be with him, though, Pidge. Engineers play well with systems analysts."

"I know. But I'm gonna miss you, Chip," Pidge frowned. "We swore we'd never be separated, and now we're about to be split up."

Chip scrunched up his face. "Yeah. That's the part that sucks."

Rocky placed a hand on each of the twins' shoulders. "It's okay, boys. You're not little kids anymore, you'll get along fine without each other." He shrugged. "Ooh, there's Hunk." He whistled. "Wow, Cinda looks _nice_!"

Hunk looked uncharacteristically made-up in black pants, a white dress shirt, and a grey-and-yellow striped tie. Cinda looked good on his arm, her blue skin striking against the frosted fabric of her strapless ice-blue dress. "Hey, Rocky!" he shouted out, clutching Cinda's hand. "Chip! It's good to see you again."

"Hey, there's an open bar," Rocky told Hunk. "You two wanna get drinks or something?"

"Not until Kelly gets here," Cinda told him. "I have to see it with my own eyes when she and Cliff walk in together." She rolled her eyes. "I still can't believe she's going with him, but hey, he's been her best guy friend since they got partnered up in Ballroom Dance 201 our second year."

"Yeah. Lucky guy." It was fairly common knowledge that Rocky found every girl on Pidge's and Hunk's floor to be attractive. Because there were far fewer females than males enrolled at the Space Academy, not every dorm floor had females on it. Rocky's and Chip's floor did not.

"Hey, speak of the devil," Pidge chirped.

Cliff had slicked his pale blond hair back to accompany his grey suit and brick-red tie. Kelly, clad in a strapless black dress with a peach bow at the waist, clung to Cliff's arm. Her ash-blond hair was in loose curls around her shoulders, making her tawny brown skin look even darker. "Cinda!" she cried out, waving. "We made it!"

"Man, if _I _was Cliff," Rocky sputtered, "I'd try to close the deal with Kelly tonight. She looks _smokin'_!"

"I'm sure the thought's crossed his mind," Hunk threw out.

Cinda smacked both of them. "Hey, that's my _roommate _you're talking about!"

Cliff and Kelly joined the group, and Lance and Keith slipped in as well. "Cliff, where's your Mate tonight?" Lance asked, loosening the collar of his shirt. He tugged on his cherry-red tie. "Man, I hate this stupid thing. It feels like a noose around my neck." Then, turning to Keith, he asked, "And where's Jeff?"

Keith shrugged, disinterested. "Probably with Morgan."

As soon as the words rolled off his tongue, Jeff entered the ballroom with Morgan on his arm. He was dressed similarly to Hunk in his black pants and white dress shirt, with a slim silver tie around his neck. But his best accessory was his new roommate.

She was wearing a short - _very _short - one-shouldered violet dress that was nearly the same color as her eyes. Her long black hair, shot with threads of aubergine and cerulean, was in a high ponytail to show off that one bare shoulder. Like most of the other female cadets in the room, she was wearing high heels, but hers were black to-the-knee boots with a four-inch platform heel.

She took Keith's breath away.

"Wow, look at how good Morgan looks!" Kelly squealed, waving them over. "I freakin' _love _those boots! She's always got the best shoes, that girl."

"Always does," Cinda agreed enviously.

Keith's eyes widened as his former roommate and former girlfriend joined their circle. Jealousy and lust shot through his body in equal amounts. The fact that she was there, looking _that _good, on the arm of his best friend was almost impossible for him to handle. His eyes caught hers for a brief second, and then she sadly looked away.

Standing near him, Morgan wanted to cry. She wanted so desperately for everything to work out between them. She thought about his initial tattooed on her lower back, and how she got it because she thought they were going to be together forever. She thought about the fact that he was standing there, looking so handsome in his dark-grey dress pants, black dress shirt, and black-and-red striped tie, and she was on Jeff's arm and not his. It was cruel and unfair.

Before she could fully wallow in her misery, she heard Pidge say incredulously, "Man, I know I wear glasses and everything, but am I seeing things, or is this for real?"

The circle looked up - as did nearly everyone else in the ballroom - as Aidan walked in with Ginger on one arm and Lisa on the other. He wore a stupid grin on his face, as though he was revelling in the fact that every guy in the ballroom was staring daggers at him for having two women on his arm.

Cliff began to laugh. "Yup, that's my Mate. Always has to outdo everyone else."

The three dates hit the open bar before joining their circle of friends. Aidan ordered two bottles of Guinness Extra Stout for himself and Lisa. Ginger - bowled over by the fact that the open bar had both Bombay Sapphire _and _fresh mixers on hand - ordered a Lemon Drop martini. _Nice, _she thought smugly. _This oughtta show Lance McClain._

Drinks in hand, the trio joined the circle and greeted their friends. Lance gaped at Ginger as she sipped her drink. She looked amazing. She was so _hot _in that little red dress, holding that martini in her hand..._Wow. She sure slugged back that martini pretty fast._

"Ginger, what were you drinking?" he asked.

"Lemon Drop martini. Gin, not vodka. Bombay Sapphire, specifically."

"Geez. That's pretty high-maintenance." Lance shrugged. "Here, let me get you another one."

She winked. "Sure thing, McClain."

"Come with me."

"Oh." She blinked, looking over at Aidan and Lisa for reassurance. Lisa glared at her with her dark eyes, while Aidan nodded enthusiastically. Deciding to work with Aidan's approval, she took Lance's arm and escorted him to the open bar. "Sure."

Walking by the ballroom entrance, they noticed Sven and Lenora walking in together, holding hands. The light glinted off their platinum bands, and for a brief moment, Ginger wondered if she and Lance would ever be as happy together as the engaged couple. Shrugging to herself, she decided, _Probably not._

As they waited in line for their drinks, Space Marshal Graham and Commander Steele entered the ballroom, followed by Lieutenant Brown and Lieutenant Stebbins. Stebbins glanced over at Lenora with a wistful look, then turned his sights to Graham, almost angrily. He whispered something to Brown, a dark expression on his face. Brown's eyes darted towards Pidge, and he shook his head disapprovingly.

Ginger noticed, but she figured she was probably just tipsy from the Lemon Drop. Lance also noticed, and elbowed her. "What do you think that look was for?" he asked in a whisper.

Ginger shrugged. "Dunno."

"You definitely need another drink."

"Yeah. I think so too."

At the bar, Lance ordered another round of Lemon Drop martinis - Ciroc vodka in his, Bombay Sapphire gin in hers. By the time they returned to their friends, Ginger had already downed nearly half of her drink. Lance raised his eyebrows. So did Lisa.

"Ginger..." she started warningly.

"Oh, get off it, Roommate. I'm here to have fun tonight." She took another long sip of her martini. "Besides, it's an open bar with top-shelf liquor. How strong could they possibly make these things, anyways?"

Lance took a sip of his Lemon Drop. "Pretty strong," he answered. _"Cripes."_

Cliff raised an eyebrow. "That good, McClain?"

"I suggest you go get yourself a mixed drink, Jack. The bartender is being particularly generous with the alcohol."

"Hmm. Sounds like a plan." He turned to Kelly. "What would you like to drink, my dear?"

She looked at him skeptically. "If you're thinking of taking a move from your Mate's playbook to get into my panties tonight, Clifford Jack, I'll stick with seltzer water. _Without _alcohol in it."

"Ouch," Aidan laughed.

Lisa rolled her eyes next to him, taking a swig of her beer. "Hey, just because I came here with you, Dalloway, it doesn't mean I changed my mind about us not closing the deal at the end of the night," she reminded him. "I don't care how hard you beg or how drunk you try to get me, you are _not _getting into my panties."

Morgan leaned against her roommate. Jeff wrapped his arm around her shoulder, looking helplessly over at Keith. He was trapped in an impossible situation between the two people he considered to be his best friends, which only made him want to smack the both of them. This break-up was horrible - not just on them, but on him and the rest of their friends. Jeff was tired of the sadness and moping.

"Okay, _enough_," he finally said. "No more moping tonight. I don't want to see it from either of you. Cripes, I wish you were ticked off at each other instead of this depression business. At least I have experience with that."

"Whoo! Thank God you said it, Aki!" Ginger had already finished her second Lemon Drop martini and was starting to wobble on her feet. Too much gin combined with high heels was not a good combination. "We're s'posed to be havin' fun tonight!"

"Whoa! Easy there, Blondie," Morgan tossed out. "You just downed those two Lemon Drops in, like, thirty seconds."

Lance raised his eyebrows and finished his own Lemon Drop. "Cliff! You comin' to the bar, or what?"

"Yeah," he answered. "Mate? You need another?"

Aidan slugged back the last of his Guinness. "Yup. Lisa?"

She shook her head disgustedly. "I'm good, thanks."

Aidan put his arm around her shoulder. "C'mon, Lis. You could at least _pretend _you like being my date. I mean, you _did _agree to come here with me tonight."

"That was all Ginger's doing, and now she's ditched us for Lance. That lush." She rolled her eyes. "Tell you what: I'll dance the next slow song with you. How about that?"

He smiled at her, his sapphire eyes twinkling with naughtiness. "Sounds good, Sweetheart. Now, are you _sure _I can't get you another drink?"

She held up her half-full bottle of Guinness. "Quite sure, thanks."

Lance, Ginger, Aidan and Cliff headed back over to the bar. Sven shook his head, grateful that Aidan was beyond trying to hit on Lenora now. It still bothered him that Aidan had told her that the two of them would never make it as a couple after graduation. _Well, we're engaged now. So much for his belief that we'd break up._

He protectively wrapped his arm around Lenora's waist. In response, she entwined her fingers with his. Their rings gleamed in the dim ballroom lighting. Looking up at him, she shot him a half-grin. "Uh-oh. Ginger's going on her third Lemon Drop."

Sven rolled his eyes. It reminded him too much of Morgan's twenty-first birthday celebration. He certainly didn't want a repeat of _that _experience. It didn't look like Keith and Morgan would be making an encore performance, but it did look like Lance and Ginger would be all too eager to fill the roles. He worried about his former roommate. And he wondered what in the universe had gone on between his friend and Ginger that was causing him to act this way now.

* * *

Space Marshal Graham's eyes darted around the room, searching for his team of Arusian explorers. He could feel Brown's and Stebbins' eyes upon him, angry about him overturning their decision. Regardless, he stood firm in his choice. His lieutenants didn't know anything. They had no idea the correct course of action to take; after all, _he _was the Space Marshal, not them.

"Space Marshal?" Commander Steele asked quietly. "Is everything all right? You look distressed."

Graham nodded quickly, possibly too quickly. The commander was not a stupid man - he would not have risen in rank if he was - and he didn't believe the Space Marshal's words for a moment. "Sir, with all due respect, I don't believe you. You look very, shall I say, uncomfortable."

He remained silent. In truth, he _was _uncomfortable. Commander Steele didn't know the argument that had erupted between the Space Marshal and Lieutenants Brown and Stebbins over the choices for the exploration team being sent to Arus. Well, not choices - one choice in particular. True, the lieutenants had spent nearly six months doing background checks and conducting interviews to choose a team, and they had chosen an exceptional group of cadets, but one of them was not fit for the group. _That _student, Graham wanted to retain for himself. He had bigger plans for that cadet than Arus.

His lieutenants were angry at him for the last-minute change in team structure. The change he not only insisted on, but implemented. They would never tell him, or probably anyone else, that they were angry with him. Yet Graham knew that they had lost some respect for him.

"Space Marshal?" Steele placed a hand on his shoulder. Somehow, he could sense that Graham wasn't in much of a talking mood tonight. "If you don't want to stay here tonight, I can supervise Senior Night in your stead."

Graham grinned. "That's a generous offer, Commander, and I am sorely tempted to take you up on it. However, I haven't missed one Senior Night during my entire reign as Space Marshal, and I don't intend to miss one now." His grin erupted into a full-blown smile. "Besides, there's always at least one inevitable drunken hook-up on the dance floor. I'd rather not miss that; I _do _get such a kick out of it." The amusement danced around in his eyes as he scanned the dance floor. "I do believe we have the makings of a few right now."

* * *

As soon as the slow song came on over the speakers, Morgan headed for the restroom. She didn't want to see Lance twirl Ginger drunkenly around the floor. She didn't want to watch Lisa dance reluctantly in Aidan's arms. She didn't want to see Hunk dancing awkwardly at arm's length with Cinda, or Cliff and Kelly showing off their mad dance skills from BALL 201. And, as much as she loved them and was happy for them, she definitely did _not _want to watch the way Sven held Lenora in his arms so lovingly as they danced together.

As she approached the restroom doors, she noticed his familiar handsome face by the men's room, sullen and brooding as always, eyes closed. Her heart fluttered a little. Blast him. Why did he have to have the same idea?

As if he sensed her, he opened his turquoise eyes. "Morgan."

She stopped short of the restroom door, unsurely. "Keith."

"Why are you here, Morgan? Were you following me?"

She shook her head, her lips thinned into a straight line. "No. God, why does it always have to be about _you_, Kogane? I'm just trying to get away from everyone dancing together." She paused, and before she knew it, the words slid out. "It makes me sad, Akira-chan."

For the first time, he looked at her - directly at her - his turquoise eyes blazing into her violet ones. "I know why you broke up with me, Morgan. It's hard to stay with someone who's going away, and I don't know how long I'll be on Arus. I might never come back to Earth." Moving away from the wall, he took her hands in his. "Let's face it, our relationship has been filled with break-ups and arguments. We've never been as strong as Sven and Len. With Arus, it was either decide to get married, or break up for good. They chose one way. We went another."

She nodded, swallowing down a sob. "Yeah."

Then he shot her a wildly seductive grin. "Regardless, I do love you, Morgan Feld, and I always will. So, in honor of that, will you do me the favor of spending one last night with me? Will you be my date for the rest of the night? Will you dance with me in the ballroom, and then spend the night with me after the dance is over?"

Her mouth dropped open in shock. She knew this was the part where she should say no, but she couldn't bring herself to utter the word. "Yes."

Satisfaction evident on his face, he grabbed her arm and began dragging her away from the restrooms. "I'm taking Jeff's advice," he whispered into her ear. "No sadness. No depression. Remember that I'll always love you, Morgan, and you'll always be a part of me, even if we never see each other again after graduation." He shot her a naughty grin. "After all, you _were _the first woman I slept with."

She smacked him on the arm. "Glad to know that swiping your V-card was all I was good for."

He disregarded the comment. "Come on. Dance with me."

* * *

Jeff was hanging back with Chip, Rocky and Pidge as they watched everyone else dance. He didn't know why he felt such an acute stab of jealousy as he watched Lisa dance with Aidan. Maybe it was because she was really putting on an act. Taking a sip of his own drink - he'd chosen a Dewar's and ginger ale, thank you very much - he couldn't help but notice the way she was looking at him with her arms wrapped around his neck. She really _had _been pretending; she wasn't really annoyed about being his date, and she really didn't find him obnoxious. He took another sip of his drink as he watched Aidan lean into her to say something.

"You know," Aidan whispered into Lisa's ear, "if you keep acting like you hate me, everybody's eventually gonna figure out that you made out with me on your birthday and you secretly want me. I'm just sayin'."

Her eyes widened, exasperated. "Aidan, I _don't _want you. I made out with you on my birthday because I wanted to know what it felt like to kiss the hottest guy on our floor." She grinned at him sheepishly. "And besides, I was drunk out of my mind."

"Oh." A confused look came over his face. "So you're saying you used me?"

"Yup."

"Hmm." He pulled her in closer. As much as she didn't want to admit it, if nothing else, Aidan Dalloway smelled as good as he looked. "I kinda enjoyed being used by you. Are you _sure _I can't talk you into a repeat after the dance?"

"I'm sure."

"Think about that again, Lis. 'Cuz it looks like your room may be short a roommate tonight." He gestured over to where Ginger and Lance were dancing together. Lisa's mouth dropped open in horror.

_Dancing _was the polite understatement for what was going on between the Ginger and Lance. In under an hour, Ginger had managed to toss back three Lemon Drop martinis, and it showed. Lance wasn't as drunk as she was, but he still had enough vodka in his system to make him do things he wouldn't normally do. As he and Ginger stumbled over each other on the dance floor, he took her face in his hands and kissed her. In front of everyone. Space Marshal Graham included.

If he had stopped at just a kiss, it wouldn't have been such a big deal. But it wasn't just a kiss. It turned into a slobbery mess of lips, tongues, and fingers. Lance ran his fingers through Ginger's blond curls and yanked her head back to kiss her neck, leaving a trail of saliva down the side of her face with his tongue. In response, she wrapped one leg around his waist.

"I am humiliated," Lisa sighed.

"Wow!" Hunk cried out, in equal parts amusement and awe. "Lance wasn't kidding when he said he was a ladies' man! Holy cow!"

"Who knew Ginger was that flexible?" Cliff wondered aloud, causing Kelly to smack him across the face. "Ow! What was that for?"

"You had it coming," she sneered at him. "Avert your eyes, Jack. _Now."_

"Geez..."

Sven, who'd only had one drink - Ciroc and tonic, naturally - gaped at his former roommate, mouth open. Like Lisa, he was humiliated, but at the same time, he was impressed by his friend's bravado. "_Herregud_, McClain, in the privacy of your room at least," he murmured, momentarily ignoring the woman in his arms_._

"Nice! Way to go, Bro!" Lenora cheered him on. She smiled up at Sven. "This whole time, I thought he was just bragging. Who knew he wasn't kidding?" Her eyes darted to the side, and the happy smile fell off her face. "Uh-oh. Why is Morgan dancing with Keith?"

"None of our business," Sven reminded her.

"Fair enough." She laid her head against his shoulder. "Hey, I just thought of something."

"What?"

"Lance still has the beanbag chair, right?"

Sven looked confused. "Yes, but -"

"And it looks like Morgan and Keith are gonna be taking over Morgan's dorm room for the night, right?"

"Um..."

"Where the heck is Jeff gonna sleep tonight?"

"Oh. I didn't even think about that." Sven shook his head. "Poor Jeffrey. Well, he's not crashing in _our _room, that's for sure."

Just as he was shaking his head, Ginger and Lance darted past them, giggling. He knew that that was it for the two of them for the evening, and now they'd be holed up in Lance's dorm room until the next morning. Despite the circumstances, it wasn't exactly a bad idea.

"_Elskede_, would you like to get out of here?"

She looked disappointed. "It's Senior Night. Could we stay just a little while longer?"

Sven shrugged. He really wanted to get back to their room and spend the rest of the night in bed with her, but if it meant that much to her, then they could stay in the ballroom for a little while longer. "Of course."

"_Takk."_

"_Youre velkommen."_

As Lenora planted a black kiss on her fiancé's lips, Morgan turned her sights back to Keith. "You know we're gonna catch flack from everybody about this, right?" she asked him, wrapping her arms even more tightly around his neck.

"Do you care?"

"No."

"Good." With a smile, he leaned in and placed a kiss squarely on her lips. He wasn't as theatric as Lance and Ginger, but it got his point across. When he withdrew, Morgan smiled back at him. There was no sadness on her face, only joy, even if it _was _the last night they would spend together. "You know, Morgan, we'll have to go back to your room. I guarantee Lance took Ginger back to our room."

"Hmm. Displacing my Amigo yet again." She shrugged. "I hope Lance thought enough to put the beanbag chair out in the hallway."

Keith laughed, drawing Morgan into him even more closely. "Somehow, I don't think it even crossed his mind."

"Well then." Placing her hands on either side of his face, she asked, "So, how do you feel about getting out of here before Jeff makes it back to the room?"

"Let's go. Now."

"Right behind you."

Space Marshal Graham looked amused as he watched his cadets couple up and take off. This was his favorite part of the dance on Senior Night, watching the cadets finally acknowledge their feelings for each other. It was the reason he insisted upon the open bar and top-shelf liquor. Yes, it cost the Garrison a fortune every year. He still didn't care.

Watching the ballroom slowly empty out, it made him feel as though he had made atonement for his decision about the expedition to Arus.

* * *

Lisa escorted both Aidan and Jeff back to the dorm. Once it became apparent that Jeff would be homeless for the night, Lisa had graciously offered him Ginger's bed to sleep in. Though it wasn't his first choice, Jeff accepted - it was better to spend the night sleeping in Ginger's bed than on a couch in the student lounge. As he used her toothpaste to finger-brush his teeth before bed, cursing out Lance, Keith and Morgan the entire time, Aidan made his move.

"Good night, Lis."

"Good night, Aidan." She smoothed back a section of blond hair that had somehow escaped from his ponytail. "Enjoy your night with Cliff."

"With my roommate." He smirked. "Thanks."

Realizing he wouldn't get anywhere with the frigid ice queen, Aidan spun around to return to his room. As he did, Lisa grabbed his shoulder. "I suppose I should thank you for being such an attentive date this evening..._and _such a good dancer." She blushed.

"Oh." His face fell. "Any time."

Nervously, she reached both hands towards him and interlaced her fingers behind his head. Once secure, she drew him in for a quick kiss.

"See, Aidan? I can kiss you without being drunk."

"Wow. I _like _that."

She raised her eyebrows at him. "You're still not getting into my panties, Dalloway. Good night."

"But -"

"I said _Good night,_ Aidan." She closed the door in his face.

With a half-grin and his lips still tingling from her kiss, Aidan made his way back to his dorm room. He passed Jeff in the hallway and waved good-night. Though he would have preferred a different ending to the evening, they had made some progress. That would have to do.

For now.

* * *

Their clothes were crumpled in a heap on the floor, and the only thing either one of them was wearing was a platinum wedding band. Curled up in their new bed - and by "new," that really meant they'd pushed the two twin-sized beds together - Sven couldn't hide his desire for his fiancée. She, on the other hand, looked like an emotionless shell.

"_Elskede, _what's wrong?"

"Another day down." Lenora blinked at the ceiling. "Another day closer to you leaving for Arus."

"I know." He wrapped his arm around her, trying to comfort her. It didn't work.

"Another day closer to you leaving me."

"Don't act like I'm looking forward to it." He shifted on the bed, positioning himself over her. "If it were up to me, we'd stay in this bed forever and never get out." He kissed her deeply, trying to encourage her in the direction of a more amorous mood.

"That would be nice." She wrapped her arms around his neck. Her eyes filled with unshed tears, ones that she would rather die from holding in than spill down her face. "Oh, gods, Sven. I need you."

"_Jeg trenger du også, min elskede."_

She peered up at him uncertainly. "What am I going to do without you?" she whispered, hating herself for feeling so weak and needy.

"I ask myself the same thing about you. All the time." With another kiss, he moved himself inside of her. "We'll survive, _Elskede._ If nothing else, we'll survive. Just remember that through it all, no matter what happens, I am madly in love with you, and I always will be."

"_Jeg elsker deg også." _With those words, she closed her eyes and wrapped her legs around his waist. There was nothing left to do except to live in the moment. For now, Sven was with her, and she could do nothing except love him to the best of her ability, and cherish the little time they had left.

* * *

"I love you and I hate you, Akira-chan. I think that sums up our relationship perfectly."

"Mmm." Keith nestled his damp body against Morgan's. Girlfriend, ex-girlfriend, lover, love of his life, temperamental woman...what the heck was she to him, anyway? He supposed that right now it didn't matter. With her nestled against him, it was as though time stood still. Whatever she was to him, it was perfect for right now. "I agree."

"You agree, huh?" She nipped the sensitive skin over his ribcage with her teeth. "Do you hate me as much as you love me?"

"I have never hated you, Morgan."

"Could've fooled me."

He sighed. As much as their on-and-off relationship had been filled with arguments, he didn't want to fight with her. He wanted to save tonight from their arguing, save it from the inevitable sadness that would follow when he went to Arus the day after graduation. Yes, he had to leave; so did Sven, Lance, Pidge, and Hunk. But that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy tonight. "Please, Morgan. Let's not fight."

She sighed, kissing the area she had bitten only moments earlier. "Okay. Sounds good."

Satisfied, he cradled her to his chest and looked at her lovingly. For better or for worse - or whatever else there might be - she was the woman he would never get over. She would always be "the one that got away." He already knew it. He wondered if she knew it, too.

She pulled herself upwards to kiss him on the lips. "Keith," she murmured softly, in the most seductive voice she could conjure up, "make love to me again."

"Gladly." Reaching over, he pulled the dark-haired beauty on top of him. If this was it for them, then they would go out with a bang. He would make sure of it.

* * *

Curled up in Lance's arms, Ginger was surprised that they had only made use of one twin bed. Then again, they were used to lesser areas; after all, they _had _closed the deal in a stairwell. A twin bed could be considered downright luxurious in comparison.

"Well," she stammered, "I suppose I should apologize for lettin' the proverbial cat outta the bag."

Lance grinned against her shoulder. "I love it when you use big words."

"Don't make me kill you, Cadet McClain."

"I wouldn't want you to, Cadet Ellington." Despite the fact that they were both sobering up and had realized what they'd done on the dance floor during Senior Night - including the groping and the kissing in front of not only their classmates, but Space Marshal Graham himself - he was happy that she was there with him. "I just wanna enjoy the rest of tonight, and the rest of the weekend."

She turned her head as best she could to look at him. "So you don't mind that the entire Academy knows that we have some sort of relationship?"

"Nope." He shook his head. "In fact, I kinda like it. And I especially like the fact that I tripped the Viking out. Man, the look on his face was priceless." One corner of his mouth curled up into an ecstatic grin. The other half, much like the rest of his body, didn't want to move.

Hearing his answer, she smiled to herself. Over the course of their five years at the Space Academy, all Ginger had ever wanted was for Lance to come out and say he wanted a real relationship with her, a relationship which he wasn't ashamed to admit to. And now she finally had it. It was just too bad that they were graduating in two days.

_Less than two days now, _she thought to herself.

Holding her close to him, Lance whispered to her, "Don't ever think I didn't love you this whole time, Gin."

She shook her head. "I always knew you did, Lance."

Sighing, he turned his head over to the window. The night sky was beginning to lighten up. Was the morning really approaching already? God, he needed some sleep. He didn't care what chaos he awoke to. He knew that he'd be ready to handle it. As he drifted off, Ginger safely secured in his arms, he could only think that he was sorry that he hadn't let the whole world know about his feelings for Cadet Ellington sooner. He was also sorry about the fact that Jeff Aki was going to kick his rear-end in the morning. Oh well, too late now.

He couldn't have asked for a better end to his education at the Space Academy.

* * *

_**Jeg trenger du også, min elskede**__: "I need you too, my beloved."_

_**Jeg elsker deg også**__: "I love you, too."_


End file.
